Red is Such an Awful Color
by AloisWearsThePants
Summary: Written for a friend. Sadstuck where Gamzee kills Dave, and Karkat tries to comfort John. Dear god I think I failed at this because seriously I never write fanfiction.


Red. All you see is red, blood to be exact. Not just any blood, either. It's your best friend Dave's blood. Its blood that is pooled around your feet and seeping into the ground staining it a deep maroon color. It's really an ugly color, and it makes you sick just looking at it.

Your name is John Egbert, and you're pretty sure your best friend was just killed by a crazy Juggalo troll that, before this moment in time, had been missing apparently. You really just met up with your friends and the other trolls and according to them, Gamzee had been missing for a while. But for just a few minutes, he wasn't missing. He showed up just long enough to hit your best bro over the head with a fucking club a few times and then, poof. He was gone again.

You are frozen in place, legs refusing to work. All you can do is stare at the body. What happened was a blur; One minute you were talking with Dave, the next, Gamzee was there. He went for Dave, but because you were standing closer to the troll than he was, you were in the way. You were the one that was going to get hurt here. You stood there having no time to react, you could've passed as a deer in the headlights, but before impact, you saw a red flash.

No, not that ugly red that was covering Dave's body, but that red that was the color of his outfit. He had rushed in front of you, pushing you aside. You fell to the ground, unharmed, but it wasn't you that you should've been worried about. The fact that Gamzee had already reached Dave was what you should be terrified about, and to tell the truth, you were. What happened next went by quickly. A raised club. Outstretched hands shielding. A loud thump. Another, followed by a crunch. As Dave's body slumped to the ground, you got up and rushed over to where he was.

That shade of red is an awful color. You extended your hand, it was trembling but you still managed to touch Dave on the shoulder. You tried shaking him. You whispered small things to him, hoping, just hoping he would respond.

"Dave... Get up."

Nothing.

"Come on, we have to get back to the others... They will be worried by now!"

He was silent. He was still. His body was starting to grow cold. '_He's reached god tier,'_ you remind yourself. _'He can't die. That wasn't a heroic death.'_

You know you can tell yourself that all you want but it still won't change anything. That _was_ a heroic death. He saved you. You felt your eyesight get blurry and then it happened. You started sobbing. Clutching Dave close to you, you held him, smearing all of that horrible red on you. Your face is buried in his hair and you almost don't even notice when you hear someone approaching. They walked at first, then broke into a run. You don't lift your head, you don't even acknowledge them. You just keep holding Dave, your tears mixing with blood that has almost stopped flowing from the injury on his head.

You hear a soft voice, and feel a hand on your shoulder, but shrug it off and grasp the blonde boy tighter. You don't want to see anyone now. All you want is for things to be like normal again. The hand is replaced on your shoulder, more frantically this time. It shakes you, softly at first and then harder, trying to snap you out of it.

"John? _JOHN._"

Karkat. It was Karkat. The troll's voice is unmistakable, and even though you knew it was him, his voice wasn't really registering in your head. You couldn't think straight with Dave cold and dead in your arms. You ignored Karkat trying to bring you to your senses, and just tried to block out the world. You felt numb. You didn't know what to do or expect, or anything really.

You don't feel anything anymore. Quiet tears run down your face as Karkat pries you from Dave's body. You reluctantly let go, still reaching out to him as you are dragged off. Suddenly, Karkat is in front of your trying to get your attention. The first thing you notice is the worry in his eyes and then suddenly you snap out of it. He was talking to you, and you hadn't even noticed.

"John? John what happened?" You can tell he's trying to hide the fear in his voice.

You start to phase out again, but the short troll doesn't let you.

"_John._ What happened to Dave? Who did this?"

You open your mouth to try and speak, but you have trouble forming words. "I... Shit. It... It was Gamzee. He just came out of nowhere and... and attacked us. Dave pushed me out of the way and..." You are unable to say anymore because the tears are coming back.

"Fuck. John, I'm sorry." Karkat pulls you in for a hug, trying to comfort you, trying to make the pain go away.

But it doesn't. All you can do is sit there while the troll has his arms wrapped around you. You start trembling, but he just holds you tighter, and starts petting your hair. He whispers in your ear that everything is going to be fine. You are skeptical to believe that, but if you gave him a chance, he just might. For a minute, you can think that things will be okay.

But in the end, nothing is ever okay.


End file.
